Well drill pipe-handling apparatus



H. W. THORNBURG WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug.14. 1955 Feb. 21, 1961 9 Sheets-Sheet 1 Feb. 21, 1961 H. w. THORNBURGWELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1955 9Sheets-Sheet 2 HERBERT WTHORNBURG,

NVENTOR. /W@l (f,-

A'ITORNEY.

Feb. 21, 1961 H. w. THoRNBuRG 2,972,388

WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9Sheets-Sheet 5 l a H2 T 08a mq@ Y I m l 1oz El? W1 \l |18 HERBERTWTHORNBURQ,

24 m 3?- INVENToR.

l' iis:

ArroRNEK Feb. 2l, 1961 H. w. THORNBURG WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLINGAPPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9 Sheets-Sheet 4 IGZ HERBERT wwwEUR@ INVENTOR- ATTOR New Feb. 2l, 1961 H. w. THORNBURG 2,972,388

WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 l 9Sheets-Sheet 5 AT1-0R NEY.

` Feb. 21, 1961 H W, THORNBURG 2,972,388

WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9Sheets-Sheet 6 I M 3T l HERBERT Whom Bv Re,

JNVENTOR.

Afro/waa).

Feb. 21, 1961 H. w. THORNBURG WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUSOriginal Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9 Sheets-Sheet 7 HERBERT Wrriomsuaa,

IN VEN TOR.

By/m@ ATro R New Feb. 21, 1961 H. w. THORNBURG 2,972,388

WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9Sheets-Sheet 8 INVENToR.

ATTORNEY.

HERBERT W .THORNBURG lCoS y, kl, W,

Feb. 21, 1961 H. w. THORNBURG 2,972,388

WELL DRILL PIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Original Filed Aug. 14. 1953 9Shee'css-Sheeil 9 54 Nq j HEaeRTWTHoRNBvRGh INVENTOR.

l BY f /lh/ Fiel 2A. v ff@ United States Patent C) l WELL DRILLPIPE-HANDLING APPARATUS Herbert W. Thornburg, South Milwaukee, Wis.,assignor to Bucyrus-Erie Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation ofDelaware.

Original application Aug. 14, 19'53, Ser. No. 374,364,

now Patent No. 2,869,826, dated'Jan. 20, 1959. vided and thisapplication Oct. 2'5, 1954 Ser. No. 464,471

' 17 Claims. (Cl. 17'5-52) This invention relates to well-drillpipe-handling equipment.

This invention is a divisional of copendingV application, Serial No.374,364, iled August 14, 1953, for Rotary Well Drill. k

The principal objects ot the invention are to provide an improvedwell-drill pipe-handling apparatus in which:

(l) Operation of the entire machine, handling, insertion, make-up,disengagement, and removal of drill tools and drill pipe is accomplishedby power means remotely controlled by a single man workingat oneposition of control. y

(2) Selection and moving of drill-pipe sections from rack to drill holeas well as rack storage of drill. pipe is accomplished by a singleremotely-controlled poweroperated tool-handling unit. Y Y v l `Inaddition to the principal objects, above stated, a number of novelanduseful details have beenworked out which will be readily evident asv thedescription progresses.

The invention consists in the novel parts and in the combination andarrangement thereof, which are defined in the appended claims, andyofrwhich one embodiment is exemplified in the accompanying drawings,which are hereinafter particularly described and explained.y

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a rotary blastfhole drill embodying theinvention. f

Figure 2 is an enlarged horizontal section taken along the line 2-2 ofFigure l, showing thelower main frame and main machinery of the drill.

Figure 3 is an enlarged side elevation of the toolhandling unit of thedrill of Figure 1. y

Figure 4 is a plan view, taken along the line 4,-4 of Figure 3, showingthe upper portion'of the tool-handling unit.

Figure 5 is a horizontal section, taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 3,showing the lower portion ,ofA the toolhandling unit. f

Figure 6 is a vertical section, partly cut away, 'taken along the line6-6 of Figure 5.

Figure 6A is a vertical section, partly cut away, taken along the lineI6A-6A of Figure 4.' Y

Figure 7 is a vertical section, partly cut away, taken along the line7-7 of Figure 5. 1 I l Figure 8 is a horizontal section, taken along theline 8-8 of Figure 7, showing` a portion ofv the -tool-ra'ck lockingmechanism.

-Figure 9 is a partial schematic end view offthe derrick showing thehoist and pull-down reeving for'raising and lowering the rotarydriveuniton the derrick.

Figure l0 is a side elevation taken along the line 10-10 of Figure 9.

Figure 11 is an enlarged side elevation Vof the derrick and the derrickhoist reeving, with the derrick in horizontal travelling position.

Figure 12 is an end view of the derrick andthe derrick -hoist reeving,taken along the line "12K-.120i Figure ll.

including ICC Figure 13 is an enlarged end view of the vertical traverseframe and the rotary driving unit.

`Figure 14 is a horizontal section, taken along the line 14`14 of Figure13, showingthe gear and rack connectionlbetween the vertical traverseframe and the derrick. Y Figure 15 is a horizontal section, taken alongthe line 1,5-15 of Figure 13, showing the sliding connection between thelower end of the vertical traverse frame and the derrick.

' Figure 16 is a vertical section, taken along the line 16T-16 of Figure13,v showing the' brake mechanism of the shipper-shaft drum in setposition.

Figure 17 is a vertical section, similar to Figure 16, showing saidbrake mechanism in unset position.

`Figure 18 is a vertical section, taken along the line 1=818 of Figure19, showing the set of tool wrenches at the joint between therotary-drive coupling and the upper end of the top drill pipe and theset of tool wrenches that are built into each socket at the base of-,thetool rack.

Figure 19 is a horizontal section, taken along the line 19e-19 of Figure18, showing the tool wrenches at the upper end of the uppermost drillpipe.

Figure 20 is a horizontal section, taken along the line 20-20 of Figure18, showingA the tool wrenches that are built into each tool-racksocket.

Figure 21 is a verticalsection, taken along the line 21-21 of Figure 22,showing the set of tool wrenches at the joint between the uppermostdrill pipe and the next lower drill pipe.

Figure 22 is a horizontal section, taken along the line v 22,-22 ofFigure 21.

Figure 23 is an enlarged plan view, partially in section, showing themain machinery for tool pull-down, derrick hoist, and propel. v 'Y Y AFigure24 is a vertical section, taken along the line 24-24`of Figure 23,showing the fluid pull-down motor and reduction-drivemechanism. Y

` Figure 25 `is an enlarged plan view, partly in section, of the propelclutch and brake.

vTurning now to Figures l and 2, it is seen that the rotary drillingapparatus that is the illustrative embodiment of the invention,comprises a horizontal mobile base 11, preferably mounted on crawlers 12and three hydraulic levelling jacks 13, which supports a derrick 14,toolhandling unit 15, air-compressors) 1 6, compressor motors 17, motorgenerator set 18 and the main machinery (hereinafter decribed) forhoisting the derrick, raising and lowering the drill string togetherwith its rotary-drive mechanism, handling drill pipe, and propelling themachine.

Derrick 14 is a one-piece unit that is pivotally mounted at 19 on`A-frame 20 on base 11, sol that it can be lowered from its normalverticalroperating position to a horizontal travelling position (shownby broken lines in Figure 1). The derrick is raised and lowered by meansof hoist lcable 21 which runs (see Figures 11 and 12) from power-drivenderrick hoist drum 22 on base 11 to and about guide sheaves 23 and 24 onbase 11, thence about sheaves 25 and 26 located adjacent the lower endof the derrick and thence about guide sheave 27 to a dead-end 28 on base11.

Vertical gear racks 29 rigidly mounted on the derrick provide tracks forvertical traverse frame A30 (see Figlures 13 and 15) on which is mountedthe rotary-drive envases the gear racks 29 on the derrick, and isconnected to the shipper-shaft drum 37 through an automatic brakemechanism (hereinafter described). rThe vertical traverse frame 30 andthe rotary drive and shipper-shaft machinery is raised and lowered onracks 29 by means of hoist cable 38 and pull-down cable 39 which arereeved (see Figures 9 and l0) from the shipper-shaft drum 37 about upperand lower fleeting sheaves 40 and 41 respectively at the upper and lowerends of the derrick, to the bull-reel drum'42 mounted on base 11.Rotating the bull-reel drum 42 in one direction (clockwise in Figures land pulls the `vertical traverse frame 30 down, and rotating thebull-reel drum 42 in the opposite direction (counterclockwise in Figuresl and 10) raises the vertical traverse frame 30 and hoists the drillstring 34.` The reeving and detailed operation of the hoist andpull-down cables and their associated apparatus will be describedhereinafter in further detail.

Turning now more particularly to Figures 2 and 23- 25, it is seen thatthe main machinery on base l1 is driven by main hoist and propel motor43 which has a Ward- Leonard control and is supplied with power andcontrolled by motor generator set 18. The drive shaft of motor 43 isconnected by llexible coupling 37 to one end o-f the main drive shaft 45to which is splined propel pinion 46 which meshes with propel gear 47keyed to the propel and bull-reel shaft 48. Therefore, whenever themotor 43 turns, the shaft 48 turns.

On the other end of main drive shaft 45 is rotatably mounted bull-reelpinion shaft 49 and bull-reel pinion 50 integral therewith which rotatesabout the axis of drive V A Turning now to Figures 9 and 10, thebull-reel drum 42 and the shipper-shaft drum 37 are drivably connectedwith vertical traverse frame 30 by the following-described reeving tohoist and pulldown the vertical traverse frame 30 on derrick 14. Twocables 38 and 39 are used in this reeving scheme, one cable 38 forhoistingv and the other cable 39 for pull-down. With the shipper-shaftdrum 37 in lowered position, as shown in Figures 9 and .10, thefhoistcable 38 is anchored at Vone end 80 of the bullreel drum 42 and one-halfwrap is put around the drum. The cable 38 is then reeved over the upperlleeting sheave 40 located at the top of the derrick and then broughtdown to the shipper-shaft drum 37 in its lowered position. An

appropriate number of wraps (sufficient to hoist the frame 30 to the topof the derrick) are then put on the shipper-shaft drum 37 and the cable38 is then anchored .at the end 81 on the drum 37. The pull-down cable39 is anchored at 83 on the opposite end of the shippershaft drum 37 andone wrap is put around the drum in the opposite direction to hoist cable38. The pulldown cable 39 is then brought down around the lower eetingsheave 41 at the base of the derrick and reeved around the bull-reeldrum 42 in the opposite direction to the hoist cable 38. An appropriatenumber of wraps of cable 39 (sufficient to hoist frame 30 to the top ofthe derrick) are put lon the bull-reel drum 42 and the pulldown cable 39is then anchored at 82 on the opposite end of drum 42. Therefore, as thebull-reel drum 42 shaft 45 and engages the bull-reel gear 51. Driveshaft 45 and pinion shaft 50 are drivably connected at will by jawclutch 53. Therefore, when motor 43 turns and clutch 53 is engaged, thebull-reel drum 42, which is keyed to its gear S1, turns to hoist orlower the frame 30.

The bull-reel drum 42 may also be driven to pull down frame 30 by thefollowing-described alternative mechanism. Fluid motor 54 drivespull-down gear 57, rotatably mounted on the end of bull-reel pinionshaft 49, preferably through double-gear reduction gears 58a, 58h, and58C (Figures 23 and 24). A second jaw-clutch 59 connects gear 57 topinion shaft 49 so that when the uid motor 54 is actuated to turn andjaw-clutch 59 is engaged and jaw-clutch 53 is disengaged, the fluidmotor 54 will drive the bull-reel drum 42, through pinion 50 andbull-reel gear 51.

turns in one direction, the shipper-shaft drum 37 and frame 30 israised, and as it turns in the opposite direction the shipper-shaft drum37 and frame 26 is pulled down.

The above-described hoist and pull-down reeving pro-i vides a positiveand continuous downward pull as well as upward hoist on the drill string34. Furthermore, since the horizontal axis of the shipper-shaft drum 37intersects the'vertical axis of the drill-tool stem, the pulldown isapplied centrally to the drill string, thereby avoiding the excessivestrains that would result from an eccentric pull-down.

Turning now to Figures 13 to 15, it is seen that not only theshipper-shaft drum 37, but Valso the rotary drive Thus the bull-reeldrum 42 may at will be driven alternatively at slow speed with hightorque by the uid motor 54 which has a relatively-high force-speed ratioor at higher speed with low torque by the electric motor 43 which has arelatively-low force-speed ratio.

At the end of bull-reel drum 42 adjacent propel gear 47, is rigidlymounted bull-reel brake housing 60 for an external contracting-typebrake band 61 for the drum. This brake is mechanically controlled byconventional means not shown. Therefore, drill tools may be lowered bythe drum 42 under control of either the brake 60-61 or the electricmotor 43.

An auxiliary-reel drum 62 is also mounted for rotation on and aboutpropel shaft 48. This auxiliary-reel electric motor 31 and the rotarydrive unit that connects the motor to and drives the dri-ll string, aremounted in vertical traverse frame 30 that runs on gear racks 29 andtravels with the drill string.

Turning now to Figures 16 and 17, as well as to 13, it is seen thatthisl device for preventing bouncing of the drill-bit is thefollowing-described automatic brake on the shipper-shaft drum 3'7.` Drum37 is rotatably mounted on shipper-shaft 35, but free rotation of shaft35'is limited by the amount that the head 84 of driver 85 can traveldrum 62 is located adjacent propel gear 47, is drivably connected todrive shaft 48 by means of jaw-clutch 63, and is braked by aconventional band-type brake 64. This auxiliary drum is used forerecting machinery, handling pipe, braking bit joints, and numerousother jobs.

about shaft 35, to which it is keyed, within internal peripheral notch86 on the housing of drum 37. Even such limited movement is restrictedby internalexpanding one-way brake band 87 which is mounted on drum 37and frictionally engages the inner face of brake housing 88 rigidlymounted by support 89 (Figure 13) on frame 30. Brake-band 87 is actuatedby arm 90 of driver 85, the outer end of which engages one end 87a ofthe brake band, and by bell-crank 91 which is pivotally mounted at 92 onarm 90 of driver 85 and engages the other end' 87b of the brake band.Set screws 93 mounted on drum 37 maintain uniform contact of band 87against brake housing 88. Arm 94 of bell-crank 92 is actuated by drum 37through reach-rod 95 which is biased by lug 96 on drum 37 to release thebrake band when the drum rotates counterclockwise (Figure 17), as duringhoisting, and to set the brake band when the drum rotates clockwise(Figure 16), as during pull-down.

Turning now to Figure 16, it is seen that during pulldown of the drillstring, with pull-down cable 38 in tension and actuating drum 37 torotate clockwise, there vwill not only be positive driving engagementbetween the drum 37 and shaft 35 through driver 84, but brake bandgezaagd 8.7. will beset due to the fact that the drilling reaction onvshaft 35 causes arm 90 of vdriver 85 Yto setbne end 87a ofband 87 andthe opposite rotation of drum 37 and its lug 96 causes bell-'crank 91 toyset rthe other end 87b of. band 87. If the drill bit starts tolback-np, and movementv is resisted not'only by ther drum 37 andcable39, but even more positively by the automatic setting of brake-band87 which in ellect locks the shaft 35 to the derrick 14.

Turning to Figure 17, it 4is seen that when ythe vdrum 87 isautomatically released due to the relative clockwise` movement of driver85 and itsarm 90.away from end 87a of the band 87, and to thecounterclockwisemovement-of lug 90 on drum 3.7.which rotates bell-crank91- cunterclockwiseA and releasesthe other'end '87h ofthe Ibrake-band.This frees the shaft 35 to rotate on the derrick. Driving engagementbetween shaft35 and drum 37, necessary to hoist frame 30, isy obtainedthrough, driver v85 when it makes contact withthje ,Y opposite end gears97a, 97b, and 97e, to gear 98 which is splined to shaft 99 of rotarydrive unit 32. The lower end of shaft 99 is connected by coupling 33 tothe upper end of the drill string. (See Figure 18.)

Coupling 33 consists of: (l) driving ange 33a which is integral with thelower end of shaft 99 and has a plurality of peripheral lugs 33b on itslower face adapted to register with and have torsional driving contactwith similar lugs 33e on the upper face of socket 33d; (2) socket 33d,which is Athreaded to make a threaded joint with the top drill pipe ofthe drill string and carries the tool wrench (hereinafter described) forlocking same, (3) split collar 33e and bolts 33f which rigidly connectange 33a to socket 33d to take the tension in hoisting the drill line,and (4) annular resilient washers 33g and 33h between the driving flange33a and socket 33d on the under side and collar 33e on the top side.These resilient washers provide a flexible coupling between the rotarydrive unit 32 and the drill pipe, so that the head of the'drill stringmay wobble slightly, and vibrations in the drill string are absorbedinstead of being transmitted directly into the rotary drive mechanism.Although these resilient washers provide a limited flexibility undercompression and lateral'forces, a rotary drive coupling is retainedbetween lugs 33b and 33e.

Turning now to Figures 3 to 8 inclusive, it is seen that thetool-handling unit provides rack storage for the drill pipe as well as ameans for moving drill pipe from the rack to the drill hole. Thetool-handling unit is preferably designed to store four drill pipes, sothat with one drill pipe set up for drilling and three in the rack, ahole ofnormal depth can be drilled with theV tools that are carried onthe machine. n

The tool-handling unit consists of the tool-rack 101, means rotatablymounting it on base 11 so that each pipe in the rack can be movedselectively into and out of position over the drill hole, means toactuate the` tool rack into and out of such positions, and means to lockthe drill pipes in or to release the drill pipes from the tool rack..

The vtool rack 101 consists of a horizontal base plate 102 and ahorizontal finger-board 103 rigidly mounted respectively at the lowerand upper ends'of vertical tool-rack post 104 which is mounted to rotateabout its vertical axis, on upper Vand lower horizontal bearing'brackets 105 and 106 respectively. These bracketsY are rigidlyconnectedto the upper and lower ends lof, main vertical post 107 which is mountedon base 11 to rotate is rotated counterclockwise, as in hoisting, the,brakeband 10 abouty its. vertical axis Therefore, rotation of post 107aii'df'itsbrackets.105l and'k10 6 swings thetool rack 101m into andoutof position' overthe drill'hole, and rotation ofthe tool rack 101 aboutthe axisof vpost 104 positions"l a particular drill pipe over the drillhole.

` The 4four drill pipes, designated 108g to 108d (Figure 1) yby their'positions onthe tool rack, that are stored on the machine forincorporation in the drill string, are

held in tool rack 101 in vertical position by means of furfbase sockets109. to 109d (Figures 4 vand 5), ar-

" ranged in acircle about post 104 on base plate 102 and fourcorresponding transverse lingers 110 v'arranged in` a similarlcirclerabout the upper end of post 104 on the linger-board 103.

V`The lower end of each drill pipe 108 rests in its socket 109 on a hook111 whichis rigidly connectedv to the lower end of vertical reach-rod11,2`that is at its upper endpivotally connected at 113l to one endbfyoke V114 pivotally mounted at 115 onthe linger-board 103. When hook 111ispulshed down by the weight of drill pipe 108,

" the arm 1.16 of yoke 114 will swingupwardly about yoke pivot and lockthe upper end of the drill pipe 108 in a depression of finger-board 103directly above then corresponding socket 109 in theY base plate 102.Removal of the weight of ther drill pipe 108 from the hook 111 causesthehook 111 and its reach-rod 112 to be lifted by the ,spring 117 so thatthe arm 116 of `yoke114 is swung downwardly about pivot 115 to permitthe drill p'ipe 108 to be removed from the linger-board 103 and thevfinger-board to be rotated awayV from the pipe.

Thus Ait is seen that, when a given drill pipe 108a in position over thedrill hole is hoisted clear4 ofy its socketv 109a by raising therotary-drive unit to which the drilll pipe is connected by a threadedjoint, the pipe 108a is automatically released from the pipe rack whichmay then be retracted by swinging tool rack 101 about the axis of post107, leaving the drill pipe suspended from the rotary drive.

Tool rack 101, comprising the tool-rack post 104, base plate 102 andfinger-board 103 rigidly mountedthereon,

together with the automatic locking and release mechanism describedabove, is rotatable about the axis of post 104 by means of achain-sprocket drive which consists of sprocket 118 rigidly mounted onpost 104 below base,

plate 102, sprocket chain 119, and sprocket 120 connected to sprocket118 by chain 119. Sprocket 120 is combined in one piece withsprocketplate 121, both being mounted on shaft 122 for rotation aboutthe axisA of post 107. A plurality of peripheral notches 123 on sprocketplate 121 are adapted to be engaged by a vertically shiftably lockingbar 124 which is mounted for relative vertical shifting movement infixed housing 125 on base 11. Locking bar 124 is actuable to lock orunlock the sprocket plate 121 and sprocket 120 by bell-crank 126 whichis actuated by cylinder pistonassembly 127 mounted below base 11. Thusit is seen that when locking bar 124 is actuated by vcylinder-pistonassembly 127 to lock sprocket plate 121 and sprocket 120 againstrotation relative to base 11 about the axis of post 107, the tool rack101 will be locked against rotation about the axis of post 104 so longas there is no swinging of the tool rack 101 about the axis of main post107, and that when the tool rack 101 swings about post 107 with sprocket120 locked by locking bar 124, there will be an equal rotation of thetool rack aboutthe axis of its post 104. In other words, since sprockets118 and 120 are the same diameter, a 90-degree swinging of the brackets105 and 106 about post 107 with sprocket 120 locked will produce a90-degree rotation of the tool rack 101 about post 104 relative tobrackets 105 and 106. Accordingly, when it is desired to retract thetool rack from its position over the drill hole, after release matassacomplished by locking sprocket 120, swinging brackets 105V and 106 90degrees (clockwise in Figure 5) about post 107, unlocking sprocket 120,and then returning the tool rack to its position over the hole byswinging it about post 107.

Fluid motor 131 located below base 11 is drivably connected through itsvertical shaft 132 to pinion 133 which engages gear 134 keyed to thebottom of post 107. Y Thus when motor 131 rotates in either directionpost 107 and the tool rack which it carries, swings about the axis ofpost 107.

As the brackets 105 and 106 swing about post 107,

they are supported on base 11 by roller 135 that'is mounted on and belowlower bracket 106 and roll in a circle on base 11.

Rotation of the tool rack 101 about the axis of its post 104 may beprevented or permitted by locking bar 136 which is slidably mounted inlower bracket 106 and is adapted to engage one of four key-holes 137 inbase plate 102 of the tool rack. Locking bar 136 is normally held inextended locking position by its spring 138, but may be depressed intoreleased position by means of lever 139 which is pivotally mounted at140 within bracket 106 and is actuated to Vlock and unlock locking bar136 by means of connecting bar 141 and bell-crank arm 42.

It will be noted that both locking bars 124 (Figure 7) and 136 (Figure6) are actuated simultaneously by aircylinder piston assembly 127, andthat, actuation of bellcrank 126 to unlock bar 136 will actuate lockingbar 124 into locking position. Accordingly, whenever sprocket 120 islocked to permit limited rotation of tool rack 101 about post 104 as thebrackets 105 and 106 are swung through 90 degrees, base plate 102 oftool rack 101 is released by locking bar 136 to permit such' rotation;and whenever sprocket 120 is released, base plate 102 of tool rack 101is simuletaneously locked against rotation about its axis. Thus toolrack 101 is at all times locked against free rotation and is alwaysunder the control of the operator.

Referring to Figures 18 and 20 a set of tool-wrench pawls 145 are builtinto each socket 109 at the base of the tool rack 101 and are biased bysprings 146 to auto matically engage cooperating notches in the drillpipe. These pawls are beveled at the top of their inner face to permitthe drill pipe 108 to be lowered through socket 109 as the drill pipe isrotated during drilling, and are mounted to permit right-hand` rotationbut prevent lefthand rotation of the pipe.

Tool wrenches are also employed to engage the upper end of the uppermost drill pipe just below its connection to the rotary-drive coupling33 (Figures 18 and 19) and to engage the upper end of the nextlower-drill pipe below the base 11 (Figures 21 and 22).

, The first set of wrenches, shown in Figures 18 and 19, consists of twopawls 151 mounted on either side of the lower end of rotary-drivecoupling socket 33d to pivot about horizontal pins 153. Each pawl 151 isin the form of a bell-crank which is actuated, by the downward extensionof plunger 154, to shift inwardly at its lower end and engage V-shapednotches in the upper end of the drill pipe. Each plunger 154 is actuatedby compressed air which passes from the central core 155 of coupling 33through transverse passages 156 and port 157 into chamber 158 in whichthe plunger 154 is seated. rIlhus it is seen that pawls 151 areautomatically actuated to engage the drill pipe as soon as air pressureis built up in the core of the drill string, and thus permit left-handrotation of the drill-pipe when the rotary drive unit isV rotated in aleft-hand direction of rotation. Spring 159 between coupling 33 andcollar 160 of pins 153 bias each pawl 151 not only rotatably, so that itwill normally return to disengaged position and thereby bias the plunger'154'to return to retracted position in chamber 158 when air pressure isreduced, but also tranversely to maintain engagement between the sideface of the pawl 151 and the corresponding face 161 of the notch at theupper end of the drill pipe.`

The second set of wrenches, shown in Figures 2l and 22, is mounted belowthe deck of base 11 and consists of hook-shaped pawls 162 mounted on thebase 11 to pivot inwardly about vertical pins 163 and engage notches 164at the upper end of the lower drill-pipe section, thereby preventingleft-hand rotation and permitting right-.hand rotationof the drill pipe..These pawls 162 are actuated by double-acting iluid motors 165.

The tool-handling unit is used in the following manner to make up ajoint in the drill string:

(l) When the upper end of the drill pipe at the top of the drill stringis near floor level of the base (Figure 21), tool-wrench pawls 162 (asshown and described in my copending application Serial No. 374,364,1iledAugust 14, 1953) are engagedand the rotary drive is reversed until therotary-drive coupling 33 is disconnected from the drill pipe whichremains suspened on tool-wrench pawls 162.

(2) The rotary-drive unit 31 is then hoisted upwardly on the derricksuiciently to clear the next length of drill pipe to be inserted.

. (3) The tool-rack arms 105 and 106 swing the tool-V (5) Therotary-drive unit is then hoisted slightly andV rotated clockwise(Figure 20) to lift the `drill pipe clear of its' base socket 109. Asthe drill pipe rises out of its socket, the trip mechanism 111 in thesocket beneath the drill pipe actuates the yoke 114 in the ngenplate 1034to release the upper end of the drill pipe.

(6) The tool Vrack 101 is then retracted, so that the drill pipe hangsfree of the rack from the rotary-drive unit.

(7) TheA rotary-drive unit is then lowered and the bottom-joint end ofthe drill pipe is screwed onto the top of the tool string in the hole byrotating the rotary drive.

(8) Tool-wrench pawls 162V are then retracted by withdrawn from thehole, dismantled, and restored to theV Y tool rack, using thefollowing'procedure:

(1) The rotary-drive unit is hoisted until a full length of drill pipeis exposed above the iioor of base 11.

I(2) Tool-wrench pawls 162 are then engaged.

(3) The lower joint of the exposed drill pipe is then disconnected byreverse rotation of the rotary-drive unit.

(4) The exposed drill pipe is then hoisted so that the lower end of thedrill pipe is above the level of the sockets 109 of the tool rack.

'(5) The tool -rack 101 is then swung into position so that the drillpipe can be lowered into an empty socket in the tool rack.

(6) The drill pipe is lowered into the empty socket and automaticallypushes down hook 111 causing yoke 114 to swing up and lock the upper endof the drill pipe securely in place in the finger-board 103 of the toolrack.

(7) Reverse rotation of the rotary-drive unit permits pawls to engagethe notches 147 in the lower end o f Ithe drill pipe and prevent reverserotation of the drill pipe.

(8) The upper joint between the rotary-drive coupling and the upper endof the drill pipe is then unscrewed by reverse rotation of ythe rotarydrive.

(9) The rotary-drive unit is then raised, leaving the drill pipe inposition in the tool rack.

(10) The tool rack is then retracted out of the way of the rotary-driveunit which may be lowered to make a connectiontol-the nextI piece ofldrill pipe to be: removed? from the well.

Now that one 'embodiment-ofy theinvention `has been-v` described, it'fisto be-understoodthatithe invention isnot to be limitedA to the specificform orI arrangement of partsas herein described andshown.l

I claim: 1. In a rotary lwell-drillingapparatus having'agroundsupportedbase; a-derrick supported by saidbase; a rotarydrill'bit;lrst power means to rotate said drill bit-about itsy verticali axis;connectingv means :fordniv-ably connecting said first power means tosaidvdrillbit,I said connecting means includinga plurality ofj drillpipes d'etachablycon-v nected` end to end and coupling-means connectingthel uppermost drill l'pipe to saidrstpower means; iirstsupportfmeans-forY supporting said {drillbit, said Ifirst power means,yand saidl connecting meanslonsaidderrick for simultaneous -verticalmovement relative-thereto, ,and second powerV means for powervraisingand powerlowering said tirstsupport means onfl the derrick; thecombination of=a horizontal rack for storing-andsorting said drill pipesbefore they are connected `tosaid coupling means; a horizontal swingframesupportingsaid rack forrotation of said rack abouta'lirst verticalVaxis; means supporting said swing frame on Isaidebase forv swinging saidframe about a second vertical axis yto move said 3. A rotary welldrillingapparatus, accordingto claimy 2, further characterizedbyfhaving: second lock means operatively connected,A to said nachy Vandto' said swing frame to at will lock said racktosaid swingframe andthereby loc-k said rack against rotation relative to said swing frameand releasable to at will release said rack for suchrotation; and meansoperatively connected to said rack and said base to at will restrainsaid rack from independent rotation about said first axis, to rotatesaid rack a limited amountabout saidtirst axis when said rack and swingframe swing about said secondA axis andthe second lock means` is,released, andto lock said rack against rotation, about said rst axiswhen said swing frame is stationary. with, respect to saidA base.

4. In a well-drilling apparatus; having `a ground-supported base; aderrick supported; by` said'base; a drill tool; a plurality of`ver-.tically-disposed drill pipes adapted to be detachably connectedend. to endI into ya string, said string connected at its lowermost endto said drill tool; the combination of a horizontal rack for storing andsorting said drill pipes; a horizontal swing frame supporting said" rackfor rotation of said nack labout a iirst vertical taxis; meanssupporting said swing frame on said base for swinging said frame about asecond vertical axis to move said rack into and out of position over thedrilling axis; and power means operatively connected to said swing`frame to swing said yswing frame 'about said second vertical axis andsimultaneously to rotate said rack about said first vertical axis.

5. Ina well-drilling apparatus having: a ground-sup ported base; aderrick supported by said base; a drill tool; a plurality of drill pipesadapted to be detachably connected end to end into a string connected atits lower-most end to said drill tool and supported at its upper-mostend by said derrick; the combination. of: a horizontal rack for storing-a plurality of said drill pipes; supported by said base andhorizontally shiftable to shift selected drill pipes on said rack intoand out of alignment with the drill axis; and lock means associated withsaid rack and actuable 1,0 by--tle.weightof a drlli pipe; whenrvsiddliupf storage position on said.' rack, toglock: said 1 drill pipe ,misaid rack. f

6. In a well-drilling yapparatus having;--a ground-supported base; aderrick, supported by saidfbase; a drill tool;A

a. plurality of drill pipesadaptedto be detachably con-y nected end toend into a string connected at its lower-mostV end to said drill tooland supported at its upper-most end, by said derrick; the combinationof:a horizontal rack, for storing a plurality of said drill'pipes,supported by said` base and horizontally shiftable to shift selecteddrill pipes on said rack into and outof alignmentwith the drilling axis;means rfor horizontally shifting said rack into and out of alignmentwithv said drilling axis; a rotary drive unit, supported bythe derrick,and including means providing a rotary drive connection .with a selecteddrill pipe whensaid drill pipe is aligned withsaid axis, to rotate saidpipe about said axis, said last-named means being, connectable `and'disconnectable by relative rotation of saidselected drill pipe and; saidrotary drive unit; meansassociatedwith said, base for restrainingrotation of asection of said drill string adjacent to and lower thansaid selected drill pipe to permitfsaid-selected pipe to be disconnectedfrom` said drill string by relative rotation of said pipe and saidstring; andy automatic pipe wrench means associated withsaid'rack and4adapted to engage said drill pipe andftolockit against rotation in onedirection about its longitudinal axis when it is on said rack inalignment with said'axis and the rotary drive unit is rotatedto breakthe connecton between said rotary drivev unitandsaid pipe, and to permitrotation of rsaid pipein the other direction byfsaidrotary driveunit.

7. A well-drilling. apparatus according 'to'claim`16, characterized bythe fact that said pipe wrench means includes a pair of pawls adapted toengage cooperating notches on said drill pipe, said pawls having beveledinner faces to permit insertion of said drill pipe therebetween.

8. In `an apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole, thecombination of: a ground-'supported base; a horizontal traverseframeshiftably supported bythe base for horizontal movement relative`thereto and adapted to support a plurality of drillpipes inhorizontally-spaced vertical positions, for storing and-sorting saiddrill pipes and shiftable to shift a selected drill pipe into and out ofalignment With the well hole; first power means connected to thehorizontal traverse frame to shift it into and out of position above thewell hole and to shift a selected drill pipe thereon into and out ofalignment withthe well holeg-a vertical traverse frame shiftablysupported by the base for verticalv movement relative thereto along theaxis-of the well hole; support means on the vertical traverse frameadapted to have a supporting connection with said selected drill pipewhen said selected drill pipe is aligned With said axis, said connectionbeing connectable and disconnectable by relative rotation of saidselected drill pipe and said support means; second power means adaptedto rotate said selected drill pipe about said axis when it is connectedto said support means and to connect and disconnect said selected drillpipe and said support means; and third power means `connected to thevertical traverse frame to power-raise and power-lower said verticaltraverse frame to raise said selected drill pipe from said horizontaltraverse frame when said selected drill pipe is connected to saidsupport means, and thereafter, when said horizontal traverse frame isshifted out of alignment with the well 'hole by said rst power means, topowerlower said selected drill pipe for rotary drilling under power ofsaid second and third power means.

9. An apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole according toclaim 8, further characterized by the fact that the horizontal traverseframe includes `a swing frame pivotally supported by the base forrotation about a rst vertical axis to swing the swing frameand rack intoa position above the well hole, and a rack pivotally suplported by theswing trarne for rotation about a second l 1l vertical axis to rotatethe rack into a` selected position above the well hole to align aselected drill pipe on said rack with the well hole. Y

10. An apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole according toclaim 9,V further characterized by having a lock mechanism operativelyconnected to the'rack and the base to restrain the rackfrom independent`rotation about the second vertical axis, and to permit simultaneous.

limited rotation of said rack about the second vertical axis when saidrack and swing frame swing about the tirst vertical axis under power ofthe first power means.

1l. An apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole according toclaim 8, further characterized by having a lock mechanism associatedwith the horizontal traverse frame and actuable by the weight of a drillpipe, when said drill pipe is in storage position on said horizontaltraverse frame, to lock said drill pipe in said horizontal traverseframe.

12. An apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole according toclaim 8, further characterized by having an automatic pipe-wrenchmechanism adapted to engage said selected drill pipe and to lock itagainst rotation in one direction about its longitudinal axis when it isin storage position on said horizontal traverse frame and to permitrotation in the other direction in such position.

13. In an apparatus for handling drill pipe at a well hole, thecombination of: a ground-supported base; a horizontal frame shiftablysupported by the base for horizontal movement relative thereto; a rackshiftably 'supported by the horizontal frame and adapted to support aplurality of `drill pipes in horizontally-spaced vertical positions, forstoring and sorting said drill pipes, and for horizontal movementrelative to said horizontal frame to shift a selected drill pipe intoand out of alignment with the well hole; a vertical traverse frameshiftably supported by the base for vertical movement relative theretoalong the axis of the well hole; a rotary-drive unit supported by thevertical traverse frame for vertical movement therewith along the axisofthe well hole, said rotarydrive unit being adapted to have supportingand rotary driving engagement with a selected drill pipe aligned on therack with said axis to rotate said pipe about said axis, yand beingengageable and disengageable from said selected drill pipe by rotationrelative thereto about said axis under power of said rotary-drive unit;and power means connected to the vertical traverse frame to power-raiseand` power-lower the vertical traverse frame to raise said selecteddrill pipe from the rack, and thereafter, when the rack and thehorizontal frame are shifted out of alignment with the well hole, topower-lower said selected drill pipe forrotary drilling under power ofsaid rotary-drive unit.

14. In a well-drilling apparatus having a ground-supported base, a drilltool, a plurality of vertically-disposed drill pipes adapted to bedetachably connected end to 12 end into a drill string, saiddrill-string connected at its lower-most end to said drill tool; thecombination of a storage and handlingdevice for said drill pipescomprising .a supporting frame; a rotary rack for receiving the i drillpipes and havinga vertical` shaft;means on said rackfor supporting thedrill pipes and engaging the latter atvr points spaced apart asubstantial distance along the lengths of the pipes; upper and lowerbearing brackets in which said shaft is journaled at its upper and lowerends; swinging arms pivotally mounted on said supporting frame and bywhich said bearing brackets are carried; means forv v swinging said armshorizontally about their pivots'to move said rack between spacedpredetermined positions,-in one of said positions va drill pipe beingattachable to or detachable from said drill-string; and indexing meansoperatively associated with said rack and said swinging means forimparting a partial rotation to said rack on its vertical axis each timesaid swinging arms are swung horizontally in one direction.

15. A combination as set forth in claim 14 wherein said means forsupporting the drill pipes on said Vrack comprises a series of socketsat-the bottom of said rack for receiving the lower ends of the drillpipes and means associated with said sockets and engaging the drillpipes for holding the latter against rotation within their respectivesockets.

16. A combination as set forth in claim 14 wherein the lower portion ofsaid rack has sockets for receiving the lower ends of the drill pipes,and releasable means engages the upper portions of the drill pipes forholding the latter in position on the rack, said releasable means havingoperating members extending into said sockets and engaged by the drillpipes when the latter are in supported position on the rack andreleasable when said pipes are lifted within said sockets.

17. A combination as set forth in claim 16, wherein said supportingmeans for said pipes includes sockets for the upper ends of the pipes,pivoted gates for closing the open sides of said sockets, and operatingmeans is connected between said gates and said operating members andreleasable by the latter to eiect opening of said gates when the drillpipes are lifted within said sockets.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

